Integrity is one of those topics that people can debate for hours. What is it? What is it not? Everyone has their own feelings about it and what it means.

Bottom line: Most people agree that integrity means walking your talk. The paradox of this is that if your talk is not altruistic, then you can do “bad” things and still be in integrity.

What then is financial integrity? Some say it is making things right and fair with money, e.g. letting a checker know when she’s given you too much change. I believe it is something deeper than that. I believe financial integrity is being true to your values around money.

Ask yourself: What do you value most when it come to money?

Your answer will be, more than likely, different than mine. There is no external law that says you have to value stuff, or a large income, or even certain lifestyle.

For example, when Ebenezer Scrooge scoffed at the two men who came to his office asking for a charitable donation, he was being in integrity with his own money values.

You see, some people love making money because they love making money. The very act of creating income brings them joy and they don’t care how that income is generated. These are the entrepreneurs who have their financial fingers in a lot of, often, unrelated business pots. They build businesses because they are lucrative, not because they have a passion for that particular type of business.

If that’s you, great! The real question becomes: Are you honoring that?

However, there are others who value doing what they love. These are the types of people I tend to work with, because I’m one of them. I’ve never been able to stick with a business I didn’t enjoy or believe in. (And trust me, I’ve tried.)

If this is you, great! Again, I ask: Are you honoring that?

If you want to be empowered with your financial integrity, you need to make business decisions based on your internal compass. Be true to what you value most.

Here are two power things you can do to create alignment with your financial integrity:

1. Dig deep and discover your truth. What are your values around money? Don’t judge what you come up with. Remember, what I value or your parents value or your BFF values may be different from what you value … and that’s OK.
2. Look at what you have been prioritizing. These are the things you do first, the things you give up other things for. Are these things, activities and decisions in alignment with your truth and values? If not, time to re-prioritize!

Becoming empowered with your finances all starts with making a decision … and then taking the steps to make that decision come to life in your world.

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Originally created for the TidBitts.com platform, launched in September of 2014, my content on Fridays helps you “Own Your Awesome” in the eight facets of your life.